Disruptive students put away their phones, walk in the woods, and talk about life for a while.
BATH, Maine—A group of five boys assemble near the main entrance of Morse High School as the dismissal bell sounds and daily afternoon chaos ensues, apparently stoic, but cloaked under the teenage air of indifference.
Fast forward two hours and about three miles through ankle-high snow, and the young men, most of them in sneakers, are sprinting across the football field in the final stretch of their journey, smiling and throwing snowballs as the sun sets. There’s no pouting, slumped shoulders, complaints about the cold, or what they missed at home between 2:15 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.
They chose to swap three hours of detention in a warm classroom for a three-mile trail hike on a below-freezing December afternoon.
“I can’t sit still for a long period of time,” said Wyatt McCranie, a sophomore, as the group stepped outside. He faced detention for repeatedly pulling his friend’s low-hanging pants up (not down) during hallway horseplay, disregarding prior warnings from administrators.
The hiking detention at the high school in Bath, Maine, is the brainchild of school guidance counselor Leslie Trundy. Originally from Detroit, she developed an affinity for the outdoors over the years and, after college, hiked the 2,000-plus-mile Appalachian Trail that spans New England to Georgia.
Trundy says the hike allows the teenagers to engage positively with nature and with herself, allowing them to reflect on what they did wrong and how they can improve, while also getting to know peers with whom they otherwise might not associate.
Separated from their smartphones, as they walk and talk, the teenagers’ behavior appears to become more mature.
“A lot of kids grow up around here but don’t get to know the outdoors,” said Trundy, who has worked in the district for 21 years and began these hikes in October last year. “It’s an opportunity for them.”
The hikes take place on a trail behind the school every Thursday during the school year. Students who are assigned punishment can select the traditional three hours after school, two hours of volunteer work, or the three-mile hike.
The most common offense is violation of the school phone policy; the devices are off-limits after the first bell and locked in pouches. Skipping class or disrespecting teachers or fellow students is also punishable by detention.
It’s too soon to determine whether the hikes have reduced rule-breaking, said Trundy, but several past participants enjoyed it so much that they joined Trundy’s outdoor club voluntarily.
Parents can veto their child’s decision if they think traditional suspension is more appropriate, but no one has complained that the hike remains an option.
“One parent said ‘I’m so grateful for this because I’m afraid my son will earn more detention while he’s in detention,’” Trundy told The Epoch Times.
